We are doing a short film called A Song for Jessica and we need the following person asap--- Producer and Executive Producer (Fundiing) --

Please visit our web-site or leg rope any likely contender and send them to us by express post!Your help is appreciated! (The script is available to those interested.)The topic is Domestic Violence. Payment to be advised contingent on funding.

Job payment

Paid
- Negotiable

The ail is not to aim for the ultimate in realism. The story is meant to be shaped as a fable and is told in memory, by Jessica some years after the events have taken place. So there will be recurring themes and repeating images which may have a a haunting effect.

The script will be used as the main bible of the film, but with an emphasis on translating the dialogue into images punctuated by words. In other words while we will follow the narrative shape of the script we will look for ways of letting the visuals either do the speaking or set up the exchanges between characters through reactions and visual cues. This is particularly so with the dialogue for the younger members of the cast.

Working with kids is always a challenge. Movies with kids tread a fine line - adults putting lines in the mouths of children for the sake of the narrative is always a risk.

What we want to do is explain to the young actors what we are trying to say and then get them to express the action/emotions in a way that works for them. Sometimes it will be with a shrug or a smile or a shaking of the head - I don't understand - what do you mean. Kids spend most of their time asking why and when they don't understand the explanation - why again. This is often a frustration between the parent and the child. "Do it because I ask you to?" "But why?" "Because I'm your mother and I know what's good for you." This isn't always openly stated, but it is implied in most parental instruction.

The escalation in tension and violence will be more chaotic that in the script. The conversation between Candy and Jess comes from desperation. They are in conflict because Jess wants Candy to escape with them - while Candy knows that for the kids to escape Jonas must be distracted. She sets out to taunt him - to escalate the tension - knowing the danger but also knowing that the kids need an avenue of escape.

Whenever something can be implied visually rather than spoonfeeding the audience with narrative structure, we will look for ways to achieve it. We will work with the creative team - actors DOP et al to find some new ways of opening up pathways. We don't want to be tied down by an expectation or an element of the script that hasn't been fully exploited.

We would hope to have a few loose ends floating around for the audience to play with. So that they can go away with a thought along the lines " But hang on a minute, if that happened, how did he decide to do that in the first place?" In other words, I don't want to plant clever questions and then come up with a magical solution.

We want to ask hard questions and leave it to the audience to come up with a solution. If there is a way of being intriguing - but ambivalent - then it will get the vote every time. We are not going for the predictable. Nor are we trying to be a tangle of puzzles - but we do want to make it an intriguing journey.

There is an inbuilt challenge in involving the Domestic Violence support industry. It is widely fragmented and many of the different organisations are paddling their own canoes - with their own agendas. Domestic Violence as a subject is also very much bound up in taboos. Although it is still very much the topic of the moment, it is difficult to get people to talk about it or sustain a level of interest. These are not just problems for us and the project, but for the support industry in general. In the past Domestic Violence was ignored or treated as a dirty secret. This is till an attitude still strong in some areas of society.

Please feel free to visit the various sites supporting the project:

ASongforJessica

JohnHallTheWriteratWork1/

Edited 09 February 2017

The ail is not to aim for the ultimate in realism. The story is meant to be shaped as a fable and is told in memory, by Jessica some years after the events have taken place. So there will be recurring themes and repeating images which may have a a haunting effect.

The script will be used as the main bible of the film, but with an emphasis on translating the dialogue into images punctuated by words. In other words while we will follow the narrative shape of the script we will look for ways of letting the visuals either do the speaking or set up the exchanges between characters through reactions and visual cues. This is particularly so with the dialogue for the younger members of the cast.

Working with kids is always a challenge. Movies with kids tread a fine line - adults putting lines in the mouths of children for the sake of the narrative is always a risk.

What we want to do is explain to the young actors what we are trying to say and then get them to express the action/emotions in a way that works for them. Sometimes it will be with a shrug or a smile or a shaking of the head - I don't understand - what do you mean. Kids spend most of their time asking why and when they don't understand the explanation - why again. This is often a frustration between the parent and the child. "Do it because I ask you to?" "But why?" "Because I'm your mother and I know what's good for you." This isn't always openly stated, but it is implied in most parental instruction.

The escalation in tension and violence will be more chaotic that in the script. The conversation between Candy and Jess comes from desperation. They are in conflict because Jess wants Candy to escape with them - while Candy knows that for the kids to escape Jonas must be distracted. She sets out to taunt him - to escalate the tension - knowing the danger but also knowing that the kids need an avenue of escape.

Whenever something can be implied visually rather than spoonfeeding the audience with narrative structure, we will look for ways to achieve it. We will work with the creative team - actors DOP et al to find some new ways of opening up pathways. We don't want to be tied down by an expectation or an element of the script that hasn't been fully exploited.

We would hope to have a few loose ends floating around for the audience to play with. So that they can go away with a thought along the lines " But hang on a minute, if that happened, how did he decide to do that in the first place?" In other words, I don't want to plant clever questions and then come up with a magical solution.

We want to ask hard questions and leave it to the audience to come up with a solution. If there is a way of being intriguing - but ambivalent - then it will get the vote every time. We are not going for the predictable. Nor are we trying to be a tangle of puzzles - but we do want to make it an intriguing journey.

There is an inbuilt challenge in involving the Domestic Violence support industry. It is widely fragmented and many of the different organisations are paddling their own canoes - with their own agendas. Domestic Violence as a subject is also very much bound up in taboos. Although it is still very much the topic of the moment, it is difficult to get people to talk about it or sustain a level of interest. These are not just problems for us and the project, but for the support industry in general. In the past Domestic Violence was ignored or treated as a dirty secret. This is till an attitude still strong in some areas of society.

Please feel free to visit the various sites supporting the project:

ASongforJessica

John Hall The Writer and His Work

Edited 09 February 2017

As for the rules, they’re very simple. Have a team that knows both the business side of this industry and the creative. If talking to someone in this room, they want to know the genre, who’s in it, how much is needed, what financial instruments do you have in place to protect their investment, distribution and how much profit will I make. Keep in mind, they don’t care what your script is about because they don’t know a damn thing about producing a film. If I want to know about your script or what it takes to produce it, I’ll hire Susan or someone like her to tell me what the hell is going on.

Fromm a discussion/blog on funding.

Edited 12 March 2017

Executive Producer (Funding)

A Song for Jessica is to be a film, not just about domestic violence, but rather a discovery of the strength in characters. The overall feeling - centered on Jess - should be one of triumph over adversity.

There is humor in everything. We know this is a serious topic but our aim is to engage the audience - entertain them not bore them to tears. We're trying to discover irony and humor even in the most distressing, violent situations.

Producer

A Song for Jessica is not just about domestic violence, but rather a look at the strength in characters.- centered on Jess - a triumph over adversity. We are looking for someone to co-produce the project and liaise with the Domestic Violence support community.

We know this is a serious topic but our aim is to engage the audience - entertain them not bore them to tears. Looking for irony and humor even in the most distressing, violent situations. Any gender, aged 18 to 99 from Australia